10+ Paid & Free Circuit Design Softwares

Electrical and electronic circuits play a vital role in every instrument and those who belong to the electronics field, they have to get an idea about their designing & development. In such a condition, circuit designing software’s allow everybody to design circuits for different application purposes. At present, advancement in technology has increased because of the internet. There are different types of circuit design tools available in the market which is used to design the circuits for electrical and electronic projects. This article discusses the most frequently used circuit design software.

What is Circuit Design Software?

While designing electronic projects, circuit designing process is the primary step to make the schematic diagram. The schematic diagram states that how circuit components are connected jointly on a PCB (printed circuit board). Once the designing part is completed, engineers can utilize their diagram for simulation. So, the circuit design software plays an essential role in electronic engineer’s life for designing & checking the faults in design at usual intervals. It is also very simple to navigate with plenty of options obtainable for best circuit design. So in today’s EDA tools, there are different features available, but often these tools cost a lot for engineers. Hence engineers are always looking for alternatives to use.

Logisim

This is an open source as well as a free tool, and this software is used to design & simulate digital logic circuits. Logisim is very useful in learning on the fundamental logic circuits concepts because it provides an interface like simple to use toolbar. This software includes many inbuilt components namely logic gates, multiplexer, I/O circuits, Flip-Flops, power, arithmetic circuits, ground.

There is a module namely combinational analysis, and the main function of this module is to enable the user to take on conversion among truth tables, circuits, &expressions. There is a combinational analysis module that enables the users to take on conversion between circuits, truth tables, and Boolean expressions. Please refer to this link to download-Logisim

Fritzing

Fritzing is open source circuit design software and it is used for the Windows users. This tool is used to make the Arduino prototypes & PCBs designing. Fritzing is a perfect tool not only for the beginners as well as non-engineers for designing, learning, & sharing the information of circuits.

Fritzing tools mainly includes different components like switches, resistors, ICs, diodes, gates, wires, junctions, etc. Once the design completes then it saves in.FZZ format. Finally, It also allows the designer to export the design into an image or a PDF. The design can be viewed in various modes like a breadboard, PCB, and schematic & code. Finally, there is an assistance page to give support in case the consumer faces any complexity during the designing. Please refer to this link to download- Fritzing

Zenit PCB

Zenit PCB software is also mainly used for circuit designing using various electronic components for semi-professional projects due to the restriction of usage of 800-pins. ZenitPCB software includes a black colored board with a network where every component can be placed with a right click.

Finally, the design can be saved in.ZSC format & everyone can also print out a copy of the project. Furthermore, the designing can be exported in the form of TXT which includes the author, design name, number of parts, pins, etc. A user guide is also available in PDF format in the help menu. Please refer to this link to download- Zenit PCB

TinyCAD

TinyCAD software is an open source for Windows users. It gives total sign symbol libraries along with tools namely PCB layouts, & schematic capture. The circuit design can be done using the components namely relays, logic gates, diodes, power sources, capacitor, switches, & microcontrollers. Additionally, it includes text, shapes, wires, and symbols for confirming the circuit connections.

Once the circuit design is finished, the circuit can take print directly, and the user can copy and paste the image in the type of a document, otherwise, user can save them in PNG bitmap otherwise the web format. Once the design completed, the file can be saved in .dsn format. Please refer to this link to download- TinyCAD

Proteus (Paid)

Proteus is one type of circuit designing software and it is a paid tool which is accessible for different platforms like Windows, Linux, & MAC. It permits users to design & deliver PCB designs. It is a complete tool for the engineers, and it carries an in-built STEP export & an auto-router in global shape. Furthermore, there are hundreds of microcontroller alternatives for the simulation.

The Proteus modules mainly include PCB design, microcontroller simulation, 3D verification, and schematic capture. Proteus is paid software the consumers can purchase it numerous configurations, based on the design size & the simulation microcontroller requirement. The price of normal feature set 487 $ but the specialized feature set is 1,642 $. Please refer to this link to download- Proteus

Eagle (PAID)

The full-form of Eagle software is ‘easy applicable graphical layout editor’ and for non-commercial use, a free version for circuit design is also available. It supports all operating systems and provides three modules namely schematic editor, an auto-router & layout editor, The circuit designing can be done using the components like filters, op-amps, diode, comparator, supply, symbols. Whenever the user clicks on every component, it reveals the features like symbol, name, etc.

By clicking the right side of the component, the user can rotate copy and delete the component. The circuit drawing in Eagle software can be imported while the pin-list, part-list, and net-list can be exported. The price of Eagle versions are Standard version is 69$, Premium version is 820$, Ultimate version is 640$, Premium LS version is 575$, & Ultimate LS version is 1145$. Please refer to this link to download- Eagle

Lucidchart (Paid)

Lucid chart software is a web-based protected platform. It is mainly used to permit users who can access from different locations to work together with their coworkers in circuit designing, modifying and charts & diagrams sharing. This software runs in a browser which supports HTML5, which means it doesn’t need third party software update such as flash. This software offers a free option as well as a subscription plan. The cost of this tool varies based on month and annual. For one month, it charges11.95 $ & 9.95 $ per month. Please refer to this link to download- Lucidchart

Digi-key

Digi-key is a free online schematic design tool. By using this tool one can design and share electronic circuits. This tool comprises of a complete electronic symbol library & also component list for designing circuits. Moreover, an in-built materials bill can be provided to keep follow the parts which are utilized in a circuit design.

When the circuit design is complete, then the user can export an image file otherwise share it through e-mail to others. Digi-key scheme-it supports all main web browsers without any use of plug-ins. All you need to do is, you have to register to design the schematics to save and share designs. Please refer to this link to download- Digi-key

KiCad EDA

KiCad is free software for EDA (electronic design automation). It is well-suited with all the operating systems and accessible with tools like PCB layout, schematic editor, & 3D Viewer. It allows the user to edit and add the components to decide the PCB layout.

The KiCad EDA has several in-built components like display, microchip, audio device, power, memory, transistor, etc. And extra components also selected like ground, bus, wire, and junction. In addition, there is a Footprint Editor for PCB & extra tools like a PCB Calculator & Bitmap2Component converter. Please refer to this link to download- kiCad EDA

Circuit Maker

This is a desktop-based tool that aids while designing circuits for Window operating system. To design the circuit, the first user has to log in the website and sign up. Once the circuit design is completed, the circuit can be saved online or on your device. The main feature of this software is that it holds a teamwork facility which allows you to access from anywhere. Please refer to this link to download- Circuit Maker

Thus, these are the free and paid circuit designing software’s which can be availed by the professionals, beginners, and students for designing electronic circuits easily. Here is a question for you, please mention some more paid circuit design software’s?